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Fracking In Our Back Yard

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HUGE WIN for clean water in Westmoreland County: MAWC has nearly doubled the amount of money they charge fracking corporations to withdraw public water from our reservoirs!

Fracking corporations paid only $5.37 per 1000 gallons of water they consumed in 2023, a year of drought. Starting on April 1, MAWC will charge fracking corporations $9.40 per 1000 gallons.

Water used for fracking cannot re-enter a watershed in usable condition. It is single-use and must be disposed of. Fracking wastewater cannot be treated, and it cannot be made safe for drinking. Therefore, Protect PT argued to MAWC that using it in this way should be more expensive than using it in a home. MAWC agreed!

MAWC took this action after Protect PT, Three Rivers Waterkeeper, and Mountain Watershed Association organized public meetings to hear from members of the community about their concerns about our water being used to frack wells during a drought.  They then approached MAWC with four policy recommendations, one of which was making it more expensive for frackers to consume so much water.

Protect PT will continue to advocate for the other three policies we recommended: limiting the total amount of water that can be used for fracking, coming up with a long-term conservation plan, and pausing fracking withdrawals automatically when the State declares a drought. If you support these goals, please sign petition here. And if you have your own suggestions for how MAWC should prioritize serving people over corporations, consider attending Protect PT's upcoming public meeting in Irwin: 

April 10, 7:00 PM

Penns Woods Civid Building

860 Colonial Manor Rd, Irwin, PA 15642

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Did You Know.........

There are 1,581 active gas wells in Westmoreland County alone.

For data on our gas wells go to  DrillingEdge. To learn more about drilling and the impact this drilling has had on your health, your property value, and the negativity of a community's worth, click on the link below.

https://www.environmentalhealthproject.org.

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For more facts about drilling

Click on

https://www.protectpt.org/fracking

 

A community that fought back and won.

https://mtwatershed.com/2023/03/07/finding-hope-in-rostravers-wellpad-denial/

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